NOVEL NEXT chapter 88
From beyond the fog of sleep came some kind of noise. I shifted a little, and like it had been waiting, a dull ache spread through both arms and legs.
It felt like the day after a hard two-hour workout at the gym—sharp muscle pain making itself known all over my body. Ugh. I groaned, then, as my head cleared, I retraced yesterday step by step.
Yesterday, meaning… exams ended and break officially started. Kim Daeseok and Eun Haeseong said to go drink, and I called Chae Yu-jeong.
With four of us drinking, it ended in an hour thanks to Chae’s weak tolerance. After I piggybacked him back to my place…
Beep, click.
Right then, the door lock beeped and the front door opened. I realized late that I was in bed alone, without Chae, and jerked upright.
No way, this asshole—!
He’s running off without waking me? I yelled like someone trying to keep a puppy from bolting out the door.
“Chae Yu-jeong!”
“Yes?”
But the answer came from right outside the bedroom, not the front door like I’d imagined. He hurried in, opening the door with a startled look.
“What’s wrong? What happened?”
“You…”
His face was fresh like he’d washed, and he had a plastic bag in his hand. I looked between his face and the bag, dumbfounded, and he gave me a sheepish smile.
“Did I wake you? Sorry. I ordered hangover food, and I was just… picking it up.”
“Hangover food? What did you order?”
“Beef short rib soup. They said you just need to boil it as-is, so I ordered that. Is that no good? I don’t really know hangover stuff.”
Beef short rib soup? Don’t tell me he ordered from some pricey place again.
For hangovers I usually get by with a quick spicy noodle soup, or if I’m too lazy even for that, instant ramen. Beef short rib soup felt pretty unfamiliar. Not that I disliked it.
I was going to wake up and at least order porridge.
I can digest anything, so ramen would’ve been fine, but I figured porridge for Chae. I didn’t expect him to wake up first and order delivery.
“Uh, hyung. Also… I took a new toothbrush from the bathroom drawer and used it. Is that okay?”
“I don’t care.”
I was going to give him one when he woke up anyway. At my answer, he hesitated and added,
“I also borrowed new underwear and clothes. I’m sorry.”
“……”
Come to think of it, what he had on did look familiar. So he found the new underwear I keep for cases like this and put it on?
Do I praise him for finding it all on his own, or call him shameless? I pressed my forehead and sighed.
“I wanted to go buy some for you, but I didn’t know the door lock code. I’ll go out later and replace everything.”
“Forget it.”
Same as the toothbrush—I’d meant to prep underwear and clothes for him, so I wasn’t particularly annoyed.
More than that, what bugged me was how the pant hems sat above his ankles, unlike when I wore them. Why is he so damn tall?
“Let me shower first and then we’ll talk. Wait.”
“If you rummage around you’ll find a few. Use whatever.”
You already rummaged for underwear; what’s with the courtesy now.
Well, good. I was feeling lazy. I gladly turned over the household to Chae and headed into the bathroom.
****
The beef short rib soup he ordered was really good. Judging by the generous portion and the amount of meat clinging to the ribs, it definitely wasn’t cheap.
Well, after what I went through last night, I can at least get a meal out of it. And with something tasty and nutritious like beef short rib soup for a hangover, my stomach felt solid.
Chae, sitting across from me, must’ve been starving; I’d never seen him eat so well. Thankfully, he didn’t seem to have an upset stomach or a pounding hangover.
“Funny, when you think about it.”
A few weeks ago, I’d been sitting here hearing his confession and turning him down. Now we were side by side doing hangover soup—porridge replaced by beef short rib soup.
You really never know how life is going to go. With that thought, I spoke to him.
“You lied about drinking the same as everyone else, didn’t you?”
“Hack!”
He was eating happily and then choked hard on that. After coughing for a while, he downed a glass of cold water and finally calmed down.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to lie, I just… didn’t think I’d be that bad at drinking…”
“You don’t even know your own tolerance?”
“I haven’t had much reason to drink.”
“Do you «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» remember last night?”
“Bits and pieces. Uh… Ji-han hyung.”
Watching my face, he set his spoon down and spoke carefully.
“I’m sorry for cursing. I thought you were someone else. And… thank you for bringing me home.”
“Yeah. Be careful with alcohol from now on.”
Out cold after two or three shots—his tolerance was clearly half a bottle at best.
If he hasn’t had many chances to drink, odds are he doesn’t like drinking much. He probably just followed because I said to come. Maybe I shouldn’t have taken him last night.
At my answer, he reddened and fidgeted.
“I must’ve been heavy.”
“Yeah, no kidding. My whole body aches.”
“I’ll go buy medicine later! Do you want anything else? And the clothes, I’ll—”
“Chae Yu-jeong.”
I frowned as he rattled on.
“I’m joking. Same as last time—why do you keep trying to buy me medicine? Do I look that fragile to you?”
“No, no, that’s not it…”
“I said thanks. That’s enough. You don’t need to buy me things.”
He started to shake his head and explain, then froze at what came next. I sighed inside.
His face flashed through my mind—hiding a crumpled packet of pills, embarrassed.
Didn’t he say he’d lived alone since before he was of age? The barren feel of his place—devoid of any affection—and the way he was desperate to buy me anything had been on my mind. And yeah, it was what I thought.
“I know you like me, but if you keep buying stuff, it’s a bit much for me. Keep it reasonable.”
“…I’m sorry.”
“I’m not asking for an apology…”
How do I explain this so he actually gets it? And really, if someone has insecurity around affection, does a few words fix that?
When you get down to it, Chae and I aren’t anything.
Still, I couldn’t just leave him to spend money on me like that.
I weighed meddling versus keeping the line, and in the end I chose the latter.
“I’m bringing this up because you and I aren’t a one- or two-day acquaintance. I’m the type who finds that stuff burdensome. I’m asking you to factor that in. Okay?”
He’d been drooping and sulky, but his eyes lit up.
“Yeah. Yeah.”
“If something makes you uncomfortable with me, say it—like I just did.”
“There’s nothing!”
“Say it if it happens. How do you know it’ll never happen? It could.”
“I’ll say it if it happens!”
…Fine. It’s something. We’ve got a long way to go, but I’ll take this for today.
“The new toothbrush and underwear—those were extras anyway, so no big deal. The clothes fit you well enough, so just wear them home. Consider it paying me back for the beef short rib soup.”
“Really? They’re yours—can I keep them?”
“Clothes don’t matter—”
I was about to say sure without thinking, then a stupid thought hit me and I stopped. Wait.
I slowly lifted my head and studied his face. With my clothes now his, he was grinning bright, both ears flushed red.
I stared at that in silence, then said, slowly,
“Chae Yu-jeong. I’m warning you in advance.”
“Yes?”
“Don’t do anything weird to my clothes.”
“W-what…?”
He blinked, blank-faced—then the meaning landed, and his whole face and neck flushed. He slapped a hand over his mouth and, for once, snapped,
“I—I won’t! What do you take me for!”
“Just saying. You never know—with guys.”
What a reaction. If he says he won’t, then fine.
Thinking drily, I picked my spoon back up and resumed eating. Chae, on the other hand, kept trembling for a while, then protested again, aggrieved.
“Hyung, you’re seriously annoying!”
“And here I thought you liked me.”
“Right now I’m more annoyed!”
“Is that so?”
I forced down the smile trying to leak out and gave a lazy reply. He pressed his lips into a hard line, huffing, then angled his body a little to the side to glare at me.
So he doesn’t want to face me, but he still wants to be right next to me? I pushed my mouth back down from where it wanted to curl. Being that cute is a talent, seriously.